Short Summary

Heavy rains during the past three weeks have caused serious flooding in various parts of Argentine and Uruguay.

Description

Heavy rains during the past three weeks have caused serious flooding in various parts of Argentine and Uruguay. In one region more than 70 centimetres (27 inches) of rain has fallen, where the average annual total is less than 30 centimetres (12 inches).

One of the worst hit areas is along the Uruguay River, which forms a natural boundary between Argentina and Uruguay. Thousands of people have been evacuated and a wide area is severely flooded in both countries.

The Uruguay River was about five meters (15 feet) above its normal level at the weekend and was continuing to rise.